PhD project wants to train 100 young academics

African graduates in the science and engineering disciplines are set to benefit from a scholarship programme launched in March 2021 by Ècole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland in partnership with Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P) in Morocco.

The project, ‘100 PhDs for Africa’, which is part of a joint initiative called Excellence in Africa, aims to uphold scientific excellence and research by funding and training outstanding doctoral candidates across the region.

The project will accept applications until 20 April and is expected to hone the skills of young researchers, allowing them to build their careers as professors and to make significant economic and societal impact in Africa.

In an interview with University World News, Jérôme Chenal, the director of the Excellence in Africa Centre highlighted that the digital revolution had increased the demand for engineers.

As such, the programme would create opportunities for academics in various fields including computer sciences, environmental, life sciences, and energy and food security.

“The programme is based on excellence and the main idea is to develop more skills in universities in Africa,” he said.

“EPFL professors will act as co-supervisors. We will have 100 excellent PhD students who will not be in Europe or in the US but in their universities in Africa and we hope to include academics in all geographical and linguistic regions of the continent,” he added.

Beneficiaries of the project are expected to conduct their doctoral studies and theses research at their home institutions, which will also award the degrees. However, short periods would be spent with co-supervisors in Switzerland.

UM6P, which is the supporting partner in Africa for the ‘100 PhDs for Africa’ is regionally acknowledged as a higher education and research university that focuses on technology, innovation, sustainability and social responsibility.

The science and engineering programme, established this year, is expected to run as a long-term project, thereby promoting collaborative action between African countries, universities, participating graduates and the steering members of UM6P and EPFL.

Action needed

Two recent reports highlighted the importance of initiatives that could strengthen science and engineering education.

The second engineering report by UNESCO, 10 years after it first published a comprehensive overview of the sector, titled Engineering for Sustainable Development: Delivering on the Sustainable Development Goals, which was published in March 2021, questioned the quality of engineering graduates produced in Africa in terms of international standards.

Moreover, the region was lagging behind with the lowest number of graduates per capita on a global scale and lacked data for engineering, which was a drawback in ensuring the emergence of qualified engineers to address economic transformation.

The report advocated for quality engineering education in Africa which could help to tackle the continent’s array of challenges such as climate change, water and energy, security and poverty.

In addition, the World Bank’s biannual economic analysis for the region published by Africa’s Pulse in April 2021, noted that economic growth for Africa had gone down by an estimated 2% due to pandemic-related measures and that improving on digital economies was the key to boosting post-pandemic economic recovery.

African governments, private sectors and development partners needed to invest heavily in digital infrastructure and science, technology, engineering and mathematical skills for the continent to harness the benefits of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Commenting on the need to advance engineering and artificial intelligence (AI) education in Africa, Moustapha Cissé, a professor of machine learning at the African Institute of Mathematical Sciences and the head of the Google AI Center in Accra, Ghana, stated that developing a network of Pan African institutes of AI would help retain the best talents on the continent and enlist world-class African scientists to address AI challenges within the African context, while promoting collaboration with existing academic institutions.

“Policy-makers must be receptive to engineering initiatives and create synergies with educational institutions and research communities in order to use science, engineering and even AI to improve the lives of Africans,” he said.